Anguat 3, 187d. J 



JOURNAL OF HOBTICULTUEE AND COTTAGE GAEDENEB. 



95 



you. They maintain this. The debenture-holders say, " Renew 

 our lease." They say, " No, it ia forfeited;" and then the de- 

 benture-holders will rejoin, " Well, then, pay us 10s. in the 

 pound. Ton introduced the Society here. You brought the 

 Society from Chiswick to South Kensington. Tou made your- 

 selves joint partners with us ; and you have also provided that 

 under certain contingencies you are to receive an extra amount 

 beyond what you now have." Now this, I believe, would con- 

 stitute a partnership. I think you should go to the Commis- 

 sioners, and say to them, " Is it not better to come to some suit- 

 able terms with us, and enable us to get out of our debts, and 

 enable the Council of the Society to resign the lease 1" These 

 are the considerations which should occupy the committee, 

 which should meet at an early day, and they should confer with 

 4he Commissioners as soon as possible [hear, hear|. 



Dr. Martyn (to the President).— Your lordship is not a de- 

 benture-holder ? 

 The Pbesident. — No. 



Lord A. Churchtll. — But I am a debenture-holder [laughter]. 

 The President. — You had better appoint a committee, with 

 power to add to their number. 



Dr. Martyn. — I think Mr. Dick, from his intimate knowledge 

 of the debenture-holders, knows those who are best acquainted 

 with the business. I am to a certain extent a stranger here, 

 and am at a loss to know who should be nominated. 



The President. — Suppose you form a committee of seven, 

 name three now and four afterwards. Perhaps that would do 

 as well as any other course [hear, hear]. 



General Mackinnon then moved, and Mr. George Eeay se- 

 conded, a resolution to the effect that a committee of seven be 

 formed — that Mr. Eeay, Dr. Martyn, and Mr. Doughty be three 

 members of it, and that they have power to chooBe the remain- 

 ing four members. 



A cordial vote of thanks was accorded to the noble President, 

 and then the meeting was closed. 



SPECIAL GENERAL MEETING. 

 A special general meeting of the Fellows of the Society was 

 held yesterday afternoon to hear a statement from the President 

 as to the financial position of the Society. In a lucid statement 

 Lord Aberdare (the President) told the Fellows the exact 

 position of the Society, and showed that it was impossible for 

 the affairs of tne Society to be carried on under the present 

 expenditure. >The noble Chairman placed the position of the 

 Society before the Fellows as utterly hopeless ; but, at the same 

 time, said that the Fellows and the public ought to disembarrass 

 themselves of the idea that there was any wish on the part of 

 the Royal Commissioners to possess themselves of the gardens. 

 [This was received with cheers]. There followed a great deal 

 of discussion, in which Mr. Godwin, Mr. Guedalla, Mr. Liggins, 

 Mr. Shirley Hibberd, the Hon. C. Butler, Mr. C. Morgan, Lord 

 Alfred Churchill, Mr. Smee, and others took part, and eventu- 

 ally the following resolution was passed : — " That this meeting 

 approves of the policy of the Council in endeavouring to effect 

 a separation of interests between the Royal Horticultural Society 

 upon equitable terms with the debenture-holders andlife Fellows, 

 and requests the Council to urge an early settlement with Her 

 Majesty's Commissioners." The resolution was moved by the 

 Hon. C. S. Butler and seconded by Mr. Shirley Hibberd. A 

 protracted meeting was brought to a cloBe by a vote of thanks to 

 the noble Chairman. 



KOYAL HOETICULTUBAL SOCIETY. 



August 2nd, 



Fruit Committee.— H. Webb, Esq., in the chair. Three 

 bunches of Black Hamburgh Grapes and two dishes of Nec- 

 tarines (Elruge) were sent from Mr. Edmund Bland, gardener to 

 J. G. Smith, Esq., Cranbourne Court, Winkfield. The berries 

 of the Grapes were very large and fine. A letter of thankB was 

 voted. A red-fleshed Melon was -sent by Mr. 0. Osman, South 

 Metropolitan District Schools, Sutton, Surrey, but the flavour 

 was inferior. Golden Nugget Melon, a green-fleshed variety, 

 was sent by Mr. D. Davis Hughes, Kinmel Park Gardens, 

 Abergele, but the flavour was inferior. Welbeck SeedliDg Nec- 

 tarine was sent by Mr. W. Tillery of Welbeck Gardens. The 

 fruit was of large size, very highly coloured, and of excellent 

 flavour, resembling Elruge, but said to be two weeks earlier. A 

 first-class certificate was awarded, subject to the statement 

 about its earliness being verified. The same gardener sent ex- 

 cellent examples of Grosse Mignonne Peach fully ripe from a 

 glass-covered wall, to which a letter of thanks was voted. A 

 dish of very fine unnamed Red Currants were sent from the 

 Society's gardens ; the bunches were very long and fine. 



A collection of Indian vegetables was sent by Mr. A. P. Barron 

 from the Society's gardens. The seeds had been sent by Col. 

 Pnckle. Amaranthus oleraceus, the seeds of which are used to 

 make cakes, and Atriplex hortensis, whereof the leaves are 

 boiled as a vegetable. A number of other herbs were in the 

 collection which would be of no practical use in this country. 



Floral Committee. — Mr. B. S. Williams in the chair. The 

 subjects brought before the Committee were somewhat more 

 numerous than has been usual of late. Particularly noticeable 

 was a pan sent by Messrs. James Veitch & Sons, containing 

 eighteen small plants of Begonia Davisii, a dwarf Peruvian 

 species, thoroughly distinct and extremely brilliant. The 

 plants were small, the leaves being about li inch in diameter, 

 each plant producing one or more spikes of flowers of the most 

 intense orange scarlet imaginable. The flowers averaged an inch 

 in diameter, and the effect they produced was quite dazzling, 

 the colour being very similar to that of the new proliferous 

 Poinsettia. This free-flowering and almost hardy Begonia will 

 not only prove a oharming decorative plant, but will be invalu- 

 able for purposes of fertilisation. A first-class certificate was 

 unanimously awarded. Messrs. Veitch had also a first-class 

 certificate for a newgreenhouse Rhododendron — Maiden's Blush; 

 a very charming variety, the flowers being blush deepening to 

 cream colour. The foliage is of the richest green, and the plant 

 is extremely floriferous. It well deserved the award. The same 

 firm exhibited a very fine Begonia — Monarch, the flowers being 

 large and rich in colour, and the plant vigorous; also the hardy 

 sweetly-BCented Bhrub Olearea Hastii. 



A first-class certificate was awarded to Messrs. Daniel Brothers, 

 Norwich, for Godetia Lady Albemarle, a remarkable and splen- 

 did variety, far superior to any other of the family. The plants 

 are not more than 6 inches in height, and may be said to be "all 

 flowers." The prevailing colours are orimson suffused with 

 lilac. This is one of the most splendid of all hardy annuals. 

 A similar award was made to Mr. Noble, Sunningdale Nursery, 

 Bagshot, for anew Rose, Queen of Bedders, a seedling from Sir 

 Joseph Paxton, but much richer and altogether superior to that 

 Rose. As many as twenty-five flowers were produced on one 

 truss, and the variety will be valuable for garden decoration. 



Messrs. F. & A. Smith, Park Road, West Dulwich, sent a large 

 collection of Balsams, the flowers being exceedingly fine, and 

 the colours distinct and varied. It is an excellent strain, and a 

 vote of thanks was awarded for the collection. Mr. Dean ex- 

 hibited single flowers of Balsams of no particular merit. Mr. 

 Elliett, seedsman, 139, Bradford Road, Hudderafield, exhibited 

 a pair of Cockscombs, very dwarf and fine ; a vote of thanks 

 was awarded. A Bimilar award was made to Mr. Newman, gar- 

 dener to W. H. Michael, Esq., Highgate, for a collection of 

 Gloxinias, Rasanovias, and Tydeas in very good varieties. 



A vote of thanks was awarded to Mr. TomkinB, nurBeryman, 

 Shardhill, Birmingham, for Tricolor Pelargonium Miss Rylands, 

 the foliage being similar to that of Sophia Dumaresque, but the 

 flowers being quite double and pinkish white. Mr. Chater, 

 Saffron Walden, exhibited Hollyhocks, to one of which, Virgin 

 Queen, white, a first-class certificate was awarded. Mr. Tong, 

 gardener to J. S. Maw, Esq., Enfield, exhibited well-grown 

 tuberous Begonias. 



A first-class certificate was awarded for double white Pelar- 

 gonium Amelio Baltet (Lemoine). The white petals of this 

 were extremely pure, the pips being thoroughly double and the 

 trusses fine. The plant possesses a good habit, but it would be 

 improved if the foliage was of a darker green. It is an excellent 

 variety. It was exhibited from Chiswick, and had been sent to 

 the Pelargonium Society by M. Lemoine of Nancy. From the 

 Society's gardens came plants of Hydrangea japonica variegata, 

 some having been grown under glass, and one in the open air, 

 the former Bhowing to great advantage; also an old plant, seldom 

 seen, of Dolichodeira tubiflora, a Tydea-like plant, with tall 

 spikes and pure white flowers, and bat for being old would have 

 been honoured ; also small healthy plants of CisBus discolor. 



NOTES AND GLEANINGS. 



The carpet bedding in the gardens at Cleveland House, 

 Clapham Park, will shortly be in perfection, and we recom- 

 mend all who are interested in this mode of flower-garden 

 decoration to inspect these superlative beds. By the kindness 

 of the owner, Mr. S. Ralli, the gardens will be open to visitors 

 after two o'clock on the afternoons of Tuesdays and Fridays 

 throughout August and September. Last year these gardens 

 were fully described on page 206, vol. xxix., and the beds were 

 there referred to as the best of their kind in the vicinity of 

 London. This year they are totally distinct in design, yet 

 equally effective — indeed the centre bed surpasses the best 

 beds of last year, and is a masterpiece of the art (for art it is 

 as here carried out) of carpet bedding. It were futile attempt- 

 ing a description of this bed, and a diagram of its mode of 

 planting would be little short of a mockery ; to be understood 

 the bed must be seen. Nertera depressa is extensively planted, 

 and associated with Sedum glaucum the effect is charming. 

 Sedum acre elegans is also extremely chaste, and the rich green 

 Sedum Lydium is this year doing admirable service. But Mr. 

 Legg's greatest " hit " is the introduction, as a green carpet 

 plant, of Mentha Pulegium gibraltarica variety of the com- 



